March 27, 2025
==============

This CD-ROM contains drivers and associated documentation to support the
MEV USB-232U and USB-485Ui USB to serial converters, based on the FTDI
FT232B USB UART chip.  The drivers also support the MEV USB-232 and
USB-485i based on the FT8U232AM USB UART chip.


Hardware manual
===============

For the hardware manual, please see the PDF file: "USB232-485_m5.PDF".
This is particularly important for the USB-485 devices as it details the
jumper settings and connections.  (The USB-232 devices have standard
connections and no jumpers.)


Installation of driver software
===============================

This section describes installation of the "VCP" (Virtual COM Port) or
"CDM" (Combined Driver Model) drivers used to install the USB serial
converter as a COM port on Windows and other operating systems.

The drivers are in the "Drivers" folder.


Windows 10, 11, Server 2022, 2025
---------------------------------

The WHQL Certified drivers for Windows 10, Windows 11, Windows Server
2022, and Windows Server 2025 are in the folder "Windows 10, 11,
2022-2025 Certified", which is in the "Drivers" folder.

For 32-bit "x86" editions and 64-bit "x64" editions of these operating
systems, run the "CDM2123620_Setup.exe" program in that folder.

Alternatively, the drivers may be installed manually from Windows Device
Manager, and this is necessary for the "Arm64" editions of these
operating systems.  See section 3.1 of the installation guide in that
folder:

* "Windows_10_11_Installation_Guide_(AN_396).pdf"


Windows 8.1, Server 2012 R2, 2016
---------------------------------

The WHQL Certified drivers for Windows 8.1, Windows Server 2012 R2, and
Windows Server 2016 are in the folder "Windows 8.1, 2012 R2, 2016
Certified", which is in the "Drivers" folder.  This driver is also
WHQL Certified for Windows 10 and Windows Server 2016, and also supports
Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows Server 2008 R2.

For 32-bit "x86" editions and 64-bit "x64" editions of these operating
systems, run the "CDM212364_Setup.exe" program in that folder.

Alternatively, the drivers may be installed manually from Windows Device
Manager.  See section 3.2 of the installation guide in that folder:

* "Windows_8_Installation_Guide_(AN_234).pdf" for Windows 8.  (Please
  see section 3 in the PDF file: "3 Installing CDM Drivers".)


Windows 7, Server 2008 R2
-------------------------

The WHQL Certified drivers for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 are
in the folder "Windows 7, 2008 R2 Certified", which is in the "Drivers"
folder.  (The newer drivers in the folder "Windows 8.1, 2012 R2, 2016
Certified" may also be used, but those are not certified for Windows 7
or Windows Server 2008 R2.) This driver is also WHQL Certified for
Windows 8.1, Windows 10, Windows Server 2012 R2, and Windows Server
2016, and also supports Windows 8.

For 32-bit "x86" editions and 64-bit "x64" editions of these operating
systems, run the "CDM21228_Setup.exe" program in that folder.

Alternatively, the drivers may be installed manually from Windows Device
Manager.  See section 3 of the installation guide in that folder:

* "Windows_7_Installation_Guide_(AN_119).pdf" for Windows 7.  (Please
  see section 3 in the PDF file: "3 Installing CDM Drivers".)


Windows XP, Vista, Server 2003, 2008
------------------------------------

The WHQL Certified drivers for Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows Server
2003, and Windows Server 2008 are in the folder "Win XP, Vista,
2003-2008 Certified", which is in the "Drivers" folder.  (The newer
drivers in the folder "Win XP, Vista, 8, 2003-2008 Uncertified" may also
be used, but are not WHQL Certified for Windows XP, Windows Vista,
Windows Server 2003, and Windows Server 2008.)  This driver is also WHQL
Certified for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2.

For 32-bit "x86" editions and 64-bit "x64" editions of these operating
systems, run the "CDM20824_Setup.exe" program in that folder.

(For the newer, uncertified drivers in the "Win XP, Vista, 8, 2003-2008
Uncertified" folder, run the "CDM21224_Setup.exe" program in that
folder.)

Alternatively, the drivers may be installed from the "Found New
Hardware" wizard that pops up when the USB serial adapter is plugged in
for the first time.  Instructions for this are in the PDF files within
the "Win XP, Vista, 2003-2008 Certified" folder:

* "Windows_XP_Installation_Guide_(AN_104).pdf" for Windows XP.  (Please
  see section 2.1 in the PDF file: "2.1 Installing Via The Found New
  Hardware Wizard".)
* "Windows_VISTA_Installation_Guide_(AN_103).pdf" for Windows Vista.
  (Please see section 3 in the PDF file: "3 Installing CDM Drivers".)


Windows 2000
------------

The WHQL Certified drivers for Windows 2000 are in the folder "Win
2000", which is in the "Drivers" folder.

Run the "CDM020600.exe" program in that folder.

Alternatively, the drivers may be installed from the "Found New
Hardware" wizard that pops up when the USB serial adapter is plugged in
for the first time.  Instructions for this are in the PDF files within
the "Win 2000" folder:

* "Windows_2000_Installation_Guide.pdf" for Windows 2000.  (Please see
  section 2.1 in the PDF file: "3.1 Installing CDM Drivers via the Found
  New Hardware Wizard".)

** Note: The installation from the "Found New Hardware" wizard has been
known to fail on Windows 2000, requiring the drivers for the "USB Serial
Port" to be reinstalled manually via Windows Device Manager.  For this
reason, it is preferable to install the drivers by running the
"CDM20806.exe" program.


Windows 98 and Windows ME
-------------------------

The drivers for Windows 98 and Windows ME are in the "Win 98, ME"
folder, which is in the "Drivers" folder.  The drivers are installed
using the "Add New Hardware" wizard that pops up when the USB serial
adapter is plugged in for the first time.  Please see section 2.2 in the
PDF file "Windows_98_Installation_Guide.pdf" in the "Win 98, ME" folder:
"2.2 Installing VCP Drivers".

It is necessary to use the "Specify a location" option when installing
the drivers and to use the "Browse" button to browse to the "Win 98, ME"
folder.  This needs to be done twice: once for the whole device and once
for the serial port.


Mac OS X
--------

The "Mac OS" folder in the "Drivers" folder contains subfolders for:

* "Mac OSX 10.15 Mac OS 11-12" - Beta release drivers for Mac OS X
                            10.15, Mac OS 11, and Mac OS 12 [x64 and
                            ARM64]
* "Mac OSX 10.14"         - Signed driver for Mac OS X 10.14 [x64]
* "Mac OSX 10.9-10.13"    - Signed driver for Mac OS X 10.9 to 10.13
                            [x64]
* "Mac OSX 10.3-10.8"     - Driver for Mac OS X 10.3 to 10.8 [x86, x64,
                            PowerPC]
* "Mac OSX 10.0-10.3"     - Driver for Mac OS X 10.0 to 10.3 [PowerPC]
* "Mac OS 8-9"            - Driver for Mac OS 8 and Mac OS 9 [PowerPC]

Please see section 3.1 of the PDF file
"AN_134_FTDI_Drivers_Installation_Guide_for_MAC_OSX-1.pdf" in that
folder: "3.1 Installing VCP drivers".


Windows Mobile, Windows PocketPC, Windows CE
--------------------------------------------

Drivers for Windows Mobile 5, Windows Mobile 6, Windows Mobile 6.1,
Windows Mobile 6.5, Windows Mobile 2003, Windows Mobile 2003 SE, Windows
Compact Embedded 2013, and Windows CE versions 4.2 onwards are included
in the "Windows Mobile, PocketPC, CE" folder, which is in the "Drivers"
folder.  Please see section 2.2 of the PDF file
"Windows_CE_Installation_Guide.pdf" in that folder: "2.2 Installing VCP
Drivers".  Support is included for ARM/XScale processors, MIPS II
processors, MIPS IV processors, SH4 processors and for 32-bit x86
processors.  The folder structure is as follows:

* "CE 2013" - drivers for Windows Compact Embedded 2013.

  + "ARM, XScale" - drivers for ARM/XScale processors.
  + "x86" - drivers for 32-bit x86 processors.

* "CE 6.0-7.0" - drivers for Windows CE 6.0 and Windows CE 7.0.

  + "ARM, XScale" - drivers for ARM/XScale processors.
  + "MIPS II" - drivers for MIPS II processors.
  + "MIPS IV" - drivers for MIPS IV processors.
  + "SH4" - drivers for SH4 processors.
  + "x86" - drivers for 32-bit x86 processors.

* "Mobile 5-6, PocketPC 2003, CE 4.2-5.2" - drivers for Windows Mobile
  5, Windows Mobile 6, Windows Mobile 6.1, Windows Mobile 6.5, Windows
  Mobile 2003, Windows Mobile 2003 SE, Windows CE versions 4.2 to 5.2.

  + "ARM, XScale" - drivers for ARM/XScale processors.
  + "MIPS II" - drivers for MIPS II processors.
  + "MIPS IV" - drivers for MIPS IV processors.
  + "SH4" - drivers for SH4 processors.
  + "x86" - drivers for 32-bit x86 processors.


Linux
-----

Support for the USB serial converter is provided by the "ftdi_sio"
driver.  On most Linux distributions, the "ftdi_sio" kernel driver
module is installed by default, and should load automatically when the
USB serial converter is plugged in.  It normally appears as
"/dev/ttyUSB0" or "/dev/tts/USB0" assuming it is the only USB serial
device connected.


OpenBSD and FreeBSD
-------------------

OpenBSD 3.2 and greater and FreeBSD 4.8 and greater include support for
the USB serial converters using the 'uftdi' driver, but it might not
support all the custom baud rates.


Application Notes
=================

Various application notes are included in the "AppNotes" folder.

Installation-related application notes:

* "COMPORT.PDF"           - Guide to changing COM ports under Windows
                            98.

Application notes for new USB-232U and USB-485Ui (based on FT232B UART):

* "AN232B_04_DataThroughput_LatencyandHandshaking.pdf" - Application
                            note about data rates, latency and flow
                            control for new USB-232U and USB-485Ui
                            (based on FT232B UART).
* "AN232B-05_BaudRates.pdf" - Application note about replacing the
                            driver's predefined baud rate divisors for
                            USB-232U and USB-485Ui (based on FT232B
                            UART).

Application notes for older USB-232 and USB-485i (based on FT8U232AM):

* "AN232-04.PDF"          - Application note about data rates, latency
                            and flow control for older USB-232 and
                            USB-485i (based on FT8U232AM UART).
* "AN232-4C.PDF"          - Updated version of application note
                            AN232-04.
* "an232-06.pdf"          - Application note about using a programmable
                            "event character" to reduce the latency of
                            the receiver.
* "an232-01.pdf"          - Application note about replacing the
                            driver's predefined baud rate divisors for
                            USB-232 and USB-485i (based on FT8U232AM
                            UART).

Other application notes (please contact FTDI for more information about
these):

* "AN232B-07_LocIDs.pdf"  - Application note about configuring the
                            driver to use USB location IDs instead of
                            serial numbers to identify USB COM ports.
                            This is useful for manufacturing
                            line-testing applications.
* "AN232B-08_VCP_Win98_EnumOptions.pdf" - Describes how to modify the
                            INF files on Windows 98 (or Windows ME) to
                            disable detection of external modems and
                            serial mice connected to the USB serial
                            converter.
* "AN232B-09_ModemEmulation_Mode.pdf" - Application note about enabling
                            a "modem emulation" mode in the driver.
* "AN_107_AdvancedDriverOptions_AN_000073.pdf" - Application note
                            describing some special-purpose
                            configuration options for the Windows
                            drivers.
* "AN232R-04_CDM.pdf"     - Describes how the previous Windows VCP and
                            D2XX drivers have been combined into a
                            single "CDM" (Combined Driver Model) driver.

Other documents:

* "baudrate.txt"          - Information about supported baud rates.


Extras
======

The "Extras" folder contains additional software which may be of use but
is not required for normal operation of the device as a COM port.


FTDI Port Monitor
-----------------

This is a desktop gadget for Windows Vista to monitor which FTDI COM
ports are available.


COMPort Assignment Utility
--------------------------

This is a free utility for assigning COM port numbers of FTDI devices.
It runs under Windows XP, Windows Vista and Windows 7.


CDM Uninstaller
---------------

The "CDM Uninstaller" folder contains GUI and command-line utilities for
removing the driver on Windows operating systems (Windows XP onwards).


D2XX
----

D2XX is an alternate programming interface for the USB232 and USB485
devices as an alternative to the usual COM port (VCP) interface.  See
the file "README_D2XX.TXT" in the "D2XX" folder (which is in the
"Extras" folder) for more information.
